On December 30th, Westlake, Louisiana's first black mayor of this overwhelmingly white town started learning his new job. But by 10 p.m. Gerald "Wash" Washington was dead in the deserted parking lot of a former high school, a bullet wound in his chest. His gun was found by the body.

Although ruled a suicide by the police and coroner departments, Washington's death has sparked rumors that this entire thing is a conspiracy. Some have accused police of covering up a murder - perhaps a racially motivated one.

"He had a smile that would just light up this room," said the outgoing mayor, Dudley Dixon who is now back standing in at the Mayor's office. Oddly enough, on the day of his death, Washington met Dixon about noon at City Hall, where he learned about the alarm system. The men lowered the flag to half-staff, to commemorate the death of former President Ford.

Odder yet, something seemed to jump out at me after looking at the AP photo of Dudley Dixon taken earlier today. Trust me, there isn't anything half-staffed to see here!